Bigger than Texas

By Andrew Murfett

April 20, 2007 — 10.00am

Slash is standing to the right, smoking a cigarette. Perry Farrell is sitting on a guitar case and Tom Morello is warming up to the left.

This was the scene that confronted Matt Hales - better known as Aqualung, the name of his piano-based, electronically infused pop act - when he arrived backstage after a showcase slot at South by Southwest.

"It was amazing," Hales, 35, says over coffee the next morning. "We played, and suddenly the dressing room was full of superstars. I hung next to Slash for a while. I had to politely ask Perry to get off of my guitar case."

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The rock stars were drawn backstage for a show from Tom Morello's star-studded Nightwatchman project, which followed Aqualung on the night's bill.

South by Southwest has proved significant for Aqualung.

Hales hit Texas with his brother Ben in 2004 and left with a major record deal.

Hales' musical career started early. His parents bought a piano before his birth and he took lessons as a small child. They also owned a record shop - a veritable treasure trove for a young musician.

At age 10 Matt joined forces with brother Ben and they began writing songs. They played in bands through high school before getting a modest recording contract with an indie label while in their late teens in a rock band called Gravel Monsters. At the same time, Matt was studying classical piano. At 19 he was forced to decide between musical academia or rock music "and getting laid".

No prizes for guessing his decision.

"It was an amazing experience," he says. "We were just thrilled to be able to get into a studio, tour and release singles."

Aqualung began inauspiciously. A night out seeing Cornelius live prompted a cash-strapped Hales to make his own music. Two months later, a desperate Hales was working on a computer and piano at home with wife Kim Oliver. He discovered an advertising agency was searching for a song for Volkswagen.

He and Oliver sat up all night fine-tuning a song to pitch to the agency.

"The finished ad was beautiful, no voice-over, almost like a little video for the song," Hales says. "By the third week, people were wanting to know about us and we started getting calls from labels and publishers."

Hales signed a lucrative British deal, the song hit the British top 10 in 2002 and Aqualung's debut self-titled album achieved gold status.

A second album, Strange and Beautiful, included his US breakthrough single - the upbeat Brighter than Sunshine.

"People misunderstood the first album, thinking that I am a miserable f---er all the time. I'm into slow, heavy music, but it doesn't mean that I am depressed."

His latest album, Memory Man, is a step up for Hales, and has more of a "band sound".

Hales and Oliver now have a son, Kofi, who turns three next month. How soon will the youngster be backstage with his dad, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Slash?

"Maybe by the time he's five, he'll probably be playing bass, so he could join the band on tour then."